Self-serving store



c. SAUNDERS.

SELF-SERVING STORE.

APPLICATION FILED 0CT.23, 1917.

1,357,521 Patented Nov. 2, 1920.

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CLARENCE SAUNDERS, 0F IllIEMlI-IIS, TENNESSEE, ASSIGNOB T0 PIGGLY WTGGLY GORIEORATION, OF MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, A CORPQRATION @l? DELAWARE.

.SELF-SEBVING STQRE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 2, teen,

' Application filed October 23, 1917. {Aerial No. 1%,134t.

n'essee, have invented and discovered certain new and useful Improvements in Self-Serving Stores, of which the following is a specification.

My said invention relates to store service and store equipment and consists in the arrangement and correlation of the elements employed therein and in their combinations as particularly set forth in the accompanying claims.

The invention has for its purpose to provide a store equipment by which the customer will be enabled to serve himself, andin doing so will be required to review the entire assortment of goods carried in stock conveniently and attractively displayed, and after selecting the list of goods desired will be required to pass a checking and paying station at which the goods selected may be packed and settlement therefor may be made before retiring from the store.

The invention as herein disclosed is a further development or improvement in an invention for like subject matter disclosed in my U. S. Patent, No. 1,242,872, dated Octoher 9, 1917,and is characterized in that provision is made for relieving any possible congestion ofcustomers at the checking and settlement counter, and to provide for more than one checking clerk and cashier to be at this station. And it is further proposed to provide means for more effectively displaying certain kinds of goods, and to display goods of any character whatsoever and however perishable, to the end of adopting a system of selling to meet the demands of an intelligent and critical public! The accompanying drawing illustrates an arrangement of store equipment and furniture display found suitable to accomplish the purposes above stated.

The figure is a horizontal plan view showing the interior of a store as thus equipped.

Referring to the construction in further detail, the store consists of a room provided with front and rear partition walls 1 and 2, dividing the floor space 3'into a lobby forming the entrance and exit room 4 at the.

front; a sales department 5 in the middle;

and a supply or stock room 6 at the rear of the building proportioned with regard to the size of the store and the particular kind of business for Whichit is designed.

The sales department 5 has constructed therein a series of display cabinets 7 arranged in the room in line with and spaced from each other and with their respective alternate ends spaced from the partition walls to provide passage-ways 8. The spaces between the cabinets form aisles 9 which, with said passage-ways 8, form a circuitous path between the respective rows'of' shelving or cabinets 7. This circuitous path must be traversed by every purchaser who enters the room, and while following thispath the customer has displayed before him for selection the varied stock of goods that is offered for sale. The different kinds of goods are contained in packages suitable for convenient handling, and assorted in lots of the different classes as required to accommodate the various needs of different cus tomers and enable them to conveniently select what they want of each item, all as will be understood.

The shelving or cabinets 10'and 11 for displaying goods on sale in the first and second aisles, and the refrigerator 12 are substantially the same as that disclosed in my issued patent above referred to, and need not therefore be further described here.

A rack 13 is located against the partition wall 14 in the path of the passage-way 8 connecting the second and third aisles, and said rack is designated as a bargain rack for selling such articles as may have be come damaged and which it is not desired to return, to the wholesaler; or it may be used for displaying and selling a special line of goods that is being introduced, such as tin, glass, or other household articles, or any special line of articles on which a special bargain sale is offered the. public to attract customers to the store, or for any reason.

The cabinet between the third and fourth aisles is especially constructed'to provide sections for holding particular kinds of goods, thus compartment 15 is designed to contain bacon, or other side-meats, the

racks 16 for holding sugar that may be placed therein in cloth sacks of various and side-meat case 15 opens on either side of through the third and fourth aisles and thereb a repeated display of these goods is had. he arran ement also makes it possible for double the number of customers to view the articles and select therefrom at the same time. The remaining portion of this cabinet structure is utilized for shelving 17 of the ordinary kind, and in the opposite side thereof there are built a number of bins 18 adapted for holding sacked goods such as rice, grits, chicken feed, etc; These bins have scalloped ends and extend out from the rack display shelves above to facilitate the display of the goods and enlarge the storage capacity for such articles.

The cabinet structure on the side wall along the fourth aisle-way is constructed hooks for holding hams and other articles that may be appropriately displayed thereon. The rear corners of the storeroom on either side of the third and fourth aisles have tables or platforms 21 provided for su portin stacks of flour, meal, etc.

he cabmet structure toward the front of the store and on the fourth aisle has bins 22 adapted for containing fruits and vegetables, and between the bins 19 and 20 there is a compartment 23 for holding eggs, and a series of receptacles 24 for plckles, mince meats, and other goods of an easily perishable character. The compartment 25 of the fourth aisle-way, at the front of the store, is utilized as a bread case asshown.

The cabinet structure 26 between the fourth aisle and the exit passage-way is constructed to provide a number of cases for candy, thread, and other small articles.

' This structure also forms a basket rest when the top of the cases is closed. Said-cases are adapted to have tops or closures that do not open to uite a vertical position so that they must be eld open while the articles are being removed and will then fall back into position, and thus the contents will be kept in a .clean and sanitary condition at all times. A

basket rest 27 is located along the side of the exit aisle, and shelves 28' for school supplies or other articles are located adj oining this rest at the front of the store. Suitable receptacles 29 are built in between the Let-7,5 21

The space between the front artition rail 1 and the partition rail 14 is utilized for the checking-up and settlement station, and within the spaceprovided by those partitions and the structures on either side, there is a counter 30, the three sides of which accommodate a number of checking clerks who stand within the central space thereof,

guarded b the closure 31. A chain or other suitable c osure 32 is provided for shutting off the passage-way around the counter and requiring the customers to pass out of the store through the aisles 33 and 34 and past the turnstile 35 as will be understood. It will be observed, however, that when the chain 32 is removed, any congestion of customers at the checking-up desk is relieved by opening the passage-way 36and 37 when the customers may take the path as shown by the arrows indicated in broken lines. In this instance also customers may of course pass out of the storethrough the aisle-way 34 in the usual way.

The counter 30 has a recess or countersunk portion 38 adapted to receive a scales whose platform lies flush with the counter I surface in such a manner that the goods to be weighed may be readily moved on to said scales and taken away. It is proposed to have adding machines 39 and cash registers 40 located on the counter as shown.

In the arrangement shown a basket trench or receptacle 41 {is located just inside the entrance and on one side of the aisle leading into the salesroom and at a point adjacent to the settlement station, or so positioned in relation thereto that clerks in waiting upon customers in said settlement station may toss the baskets, after being emptied, from said settlement station back into the basket trench or receptacle in an easy and convenient man- ,ner. By this means the baskets are not only contained in a location convenient for the customer to pick up immediately after entering the salesroom but a receptacle is pro-- vided so constructed and positioned that the clerk in the settlement counter may return the basket to said receptacle with the least possible effort and loss of time. The space to the left of the lobby is provided with a table 43 and seats or benches 44, and in all other respects the store arrangements and equipment employed are much the same as that fully illustrated and described in my patent heretofore referred to, and to which reference may be had for a more complete understanding of the operation of the system and the advantages claimed therefor. v

It is obvious that those skilled'in the art may vary the details of construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of my invention, and therefore I do not wish to be limited to such features except as may be required by the claims.

Havin thus described my said invention, what I cl aim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l in a self'serving store for the vending of merchandise, means for displaying said merchandise and guiding customers in their passage from the entrance before such displdy by a settlement station to the exit, and comprising display cabinets arranged with spaces between them to form aisles communicating with each other from the entigpnce to the exit, and a settlement station a jacent to said exit arranged with a multile' of paths leading from the final aisle around different parts of said settlement station and terminating in a single aisle or' path leading to the ultimate exit, substantially as set forth. 2. in a store for vending merchandise comprising a salesroom having a series of merchandise holders arranged therein with ya passageway for the customers and an en- Elli trance and an exit, a checking and settlement counter arranged adjacent to said exit with a multiple of passageways each communieating with the salesroom and leading alongside different parts of said checking and settlement counter to the same exit, substantially as set forth.

3. in a store for vending merchandise having a salesroom with merchandise holders therein and a passageway for customers and an entrance and an exit, a checking and settlement counter arranged to accommodate a varying number of clerks and having a multiple of passageways along difi'erent parts thereof all leading -rrom the salesroom passageway to the same exit, substantially as set forth.

l. in a store for the vending of merchandisc, the combination of merchandise holders in a separate sales compartment with aisles between them arranged to form a continuous path from the entrance to an exit leading into a. checking and settlement station, which station comprises a space adjacent the exit from the sales compartment and in said space arranged to provide a mul tiple of passageways by different sides of the counter each leading into a single exit aisle which passes the cashiers desk and leads through the exit from the sales compartment, substantially as set forth.

5. In a store for the vending of merchandise, the combination of display cabinets arranged. with aisles between them leading from an entrance gate at one end to an exit gate at the other, a checking and settlement counter interposed in the aisle adjacent to the exit gate, said counter being formed and arranged to provide a multiple of passageways around said several sides thereof, whereby customers may be waited upon from one or more sides of said counter, substantially as set forth.

I 6. In a store for the vending of merchandies, the combination of a series of merchandise display cabinets arranged with aisles between them said aisles leading from an en trance gate to an exit ate, and a checking or settlement station lnside the exit gate comprising counters formed to provide a multiple of paths around different sides thereof and each. communicating with the aisle leading thereto from, the space containing the merchandise display cabinets, substantially as set forth.

7. A. self-serving store for the vending of merchandise comprising a front lobby, a salesroom back of said lobby and separated therefrom by a partition having an entrance and an exit, a basket trench or receptacle located adjacent to the entrance,a checking and settlement counter located adjacent to the exit, merchandise holders arranged in the salesroom between said entrance and exit to form aisles leading from one to the other, said checking counter being located back of the partition separating the salesroom from the lobby and between the front ends of the entrance aisle and the exit aisle, with pas-- sageways leading from said exit aisle by the said checking and settlement counter to the lobby, substantially as set forth.

8. In a self-serving store for the vending of merchandise comprising a lobby and a salesroom, means for normally separating said lobby and salesroom provided with an entrance from said lobby to said salesrooin and an exit from said salesroom to said lobby, merchandise holders arranged in said salesroom, a checking and settlement station adjacent to said exit and back of the means separating the lobby from the salesroom, and a basket trench or receptacle located on one side of the entrance, aisle in a position adjacent the settlement station, whereby baskets may. be conveniently tossed from said settlement station into said basket trench or receptacle, substantially as set forth.

9. In a self-serving store for the vending of merchandise comprising a front .lobby and a salesroom back of said lobby and divided therefrom by a partition, said partition having an entrance and an exit for said salesroom, a checking and settlement counter located intermediate said entrance and exit, a basket rack or trench on one side of the checking and settlement counter, and a series of display cabinets arranged to form aisles through the salesroom leading from the entrance to the exit with the final aisle merging into passageways leading by the settlement counter to the lobby.

10. In a self-serving store for the vending of merchandise a series of merchandise holders arranged to form aisles in a salessure for the entrance, a closure for the exit,

salesroom having ais es, a partition separating said lobby and salesroom provided with an entrance and an exit, and a checking and settlement counter between said ,entrance and exit, a series of passageways being provided all leading from the final aisle of the salesroom by said checking and settlement counter to the lobby, substantially as set forth.

12. In a self-serving store for the vending of merchandise comprisin a front lobby, a

salesroom back of said lo by having aisles and divided from the lobby by a cross partition in which is located both means for entrance from the lobby to the salesroom and means for egress from the salesroom to the lobby, a checking and settlement-counter interposed between said entrance and means of egress and back of the partition dividing the lobby from the salesroom, and other partitions arranged to form passageways from the final aisle of the salesroom alongside said checking and settlement counter through the means of egress into the lobby, substantially as set forth. 5

13. In a self-serving store for. the vending of merchandise comprisi a front lobby and a salesroom back of said lobby, a part1- tion dividing said lobby from said salesroom, means for entrance to the salesroom and means for egress therefrom in said partition, and a checking and settlement counter arran ed in the front end of the salesroom bac of said partition and intermediate the entrance and exit, and merchandise holders arranged in the salesroom to form aisles for guiding the customers therethrough, the final aisle merging into passageways leading by said checking and settlement counter to the lobby, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal at Memphis, Tennessee, this 20th day of October, A. D. nineteen hundred and seventeen.

CLARENCE SAUNDERS. 14.5.

Witnesses:

JoHN W. F ARLEY,

E. N. Games. 

